Ottawa Sustainability Tour

Jim Birtch – Founder and Chair – Ottawa Biosphere Eco-City Initiative

Sustainability means using the resources of today intelligently to meet our needs while leaving enough for future generations to meet their needs. It’s about living in harmony with nature and improving the quality of lives. It’s also about making the places we live in good for people. The ways in which humans did things in the past didn’t always have an eye toward sustainability. But as people and organizations we make choices. A good way to learn about sustainability is to view the successes of others.

As part of the program, on the 3rd day of iWISE2017, we will take you on a tour bus to visit ten excellent examples of sustainability, each in its theme as defined by the Biosphere Eco-City Initiative. Visit, enjoy, and use these sites as models in your life. All the sites are free to visit, from spring to fall. Some are also open in winter.

If you would like to do the tour on your own and on a bicycle, we have included a Cycling Tour Map followed by the textual Cycling Tour Route. Ottawa is your city. Even if you live somewhere else, and remember that Canada’s capital belongs to you. If you come from another country, you’ll find that Ottawa is a world city. If you live here and know the city well, do the tour and see Ottawa in a new light. Ottawa is both large and small and so are the sites on the tour – from a large outdoor recreation complex to a pedestrian and cycling bridge that is changing downtown traffic patterns. Explore Ottawa to get a sense of this place. Have fun!

Tour Sites

THEME: NATURAL CAPITALmaintaining land, water, soil, materials

Natural capital is the potential of natural elements to meet human needs. To ensure the sustainability of our natural capital, we want to maintain land in a natural condition, preserve soils, protect waterways and use natural building materials (such as wood and rock) in intelligent ways. Richelieu Park represents sustainable Natural Capital with healthy trees left standing to provide sap for maple syrup.

Description

From February to April, the park’s maple trees are tapped in the traditional way using hanging pails. The sap is collected to be boiled into maple syrup in the only urban sugar shack in North America. The Vanier Museopark is a francophone museum on the second floor of the Richelieu-Vanier Community Centre in the 7-hectare Richelieu Park.

What to See and Do Here

Walk along the mildly sloping trails and listen to birds and chipmunks. In season, note the pails hanging on trees to collect maple sap and then taste pancakes with maple syrup at the sugar shack. The site is open all year and has many events. Maple treats, books by Vanier authors and other products are available at the Museoboutique. The Vanier Public Library is on-site.

THEME: SENSE OF PLACEbelonging, sense of community, and stewardship

People feel they belong when their neighborhood or city meets their needs and when they interact with other community members. Some sites can inspire a sense of place. This feeling of belonging often leads to greater care for the social needs of others and to greater stewardship of the environment.

Description

Major’s Hill Park is Ottawa’s oldest park, formally established in 1875, and covering just over five hectares in the heart of the capital. A large lawn forms the centre of the park. Many of the walkways surrounding the lawn offer views out over the Rideau Canal and the Ottawa River.

What to See and Do Here

A unique location, almost entirely surrounded by some of the city’s major landmarks: Chateau Laurier, American Embassy, National Art Gallery, Rideau Canal locks, and Parliament Hill. The Ottawa River, the original transportation
backbone of the region, flows east toward Montreal.

The Canadian Tulip Festival at Major’s Hill Park in Ottawa. Courtesy Fares Mouatsi.

THEME: TRANSPORTATIONmovement of goods and people

Sustainable transportation means moving goods and people using the fewest resources and polluting the least. For example, air travel is not very sustainable, whereas walking is.

Description

The Corktown Footbridge takes pedestrians and cyclists across the historic Rideau Canal, the world’s longest skating rink in winter. On the east side lies the University of Ottawa in Sandy Hill with its Campus transitway station. The west side features the commercial and entertainment area of Elgin Street, Lisgar High School and City Hall. The bridge also connects the Rideau Canal’s Eastern and Western Pathways, which are important cycling and walking paths.

What to See and Do Here

The bridge itself is elegant. From it you can see beautiful views of the city in all directions. This is one of the best views of the Rideau Canal, with canoes and cruise boats in summer and skaters in winter. Padlocks line the bridge’s railings, attached there by lovers who then threw away the keys, symbolizing an everlasting commitment. This is a more common practice in Europe, but the body of water crossed by this bridge is itself linked by 47 “canal locks” from Ottawa to Kingston.

THEME: ENERGYfor buildings, transportation, manufacturing and food

Conserving energy and reducing its use are very important aspects of sustainability. Energy conservation is vibrant in Ottawa. This includes building retrofitting (the addition of new technology or features to older systems), expansion of public transit, and exploration of district heating systems. Alternative energy sources are also being explored: solar, ground- source heating, and biogas collection on farms.

Description

Completed in 2012 to house the Faculty of Social Sciences, the university’s newest tower is environmentally friendly with a heat-recovery system (the building does not need to be heated unless the temperature goes below -17° C). The building was designed to achieve a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) “gold” certification. During much of the winter, it shares its extra heat with other campus buildings and helps heat water on campus during summer.

What to See and Do Here

From the 5th floor, see the 6-story green wall, North America’s largest indoor living wall, in the main atrium. Note how much natural light there is – 95% of the building receives daylight. Stop at Première Moisson on the first floor for fair trade, organic coffee, and meat and dairy products from local farmers.

THEME: FOODlocal food, heritage crops and animals, urban gardens

This site’s main purpose is to serve as a space to engage and educate the senses, the mind and the imagination in terms of our relationships with nature, particularly with respect to food. The focus is on kids, but adults are welcome to help.

Description

Children design and operate this garden that features organic food, perennial plants, shrubs and trees. They create elaborate signs for their individual plants, while adults help with some of the heavier work and organize group activities. A colorful picket fence surrounding the garden makes it very easy to find.

What to See and Do Here

A flagstone pathway, level enough for wheelchairs, takes you to raised organic vegetable beds, a seating circle for story-time and activities, a 3- stage composting bin, and a “twigloo” play structure. Off the pathway is a woodland garden at the back. The Children’s Garden is a place for play-groups,

THEME: HEALTH
clean air/water, safety, healthy access to environment

Clean air, water and soil in urban regions is essential to sustainability. So is safety, which relates to buildings, traffic and community programs. Access to the outdoors is important and activities that provide this to less able members of our cities are commendable.

Description

This large playground in Brewer Park provides outdoor fun for children with physical, developmental, cognitive, learning, hearing or visual disabilities and impairments. Other children like it too. There are also shaded areas to take a break out of the sun.

What to See and Do Here

An enclosed swing and a swinging platform cater to children who cannot use a regular seat but who love to sway in the breeze. Minimum slopes provide wheelchair access to all play areas, while soft modular tiles under some equipment help prevent injuries from falls. Gear and puzzle panels, pictures, labyrinths, crawl tunnels, and sound and sensory panels help kids learn. The Rideau River is located within walking distance south of the playground.

THEME: RECREATION
urban and rural, greening sports events

Many forms of recreation, from walking or horseback riding to ultimate frisbee, bring pleasure with low environmental impact. Parks and pathways are important in both urban
and rural parts of the city. Farm holidays teach food production to urban folk. Outdoor sports events can be made more sustainable with enhanced public transit, carbon offsets, the sale of healthy food and drinks, and the increased availability of drinking fountains.

Description

This is a large park on the Rideau River with grass, mature trees and a sand beach. It is popular for wedding photos because of its natural beauty. Picnic tables, tennis courts, a playground and volleyball nets provide opportunities for outdoor recreation for people of all ages. Across the toboggan hill, you can see an outdoor track and sports field that hosted the international 2001 Francophone Games.

What to See and Do Here

As you walk along the natural shoreline you can watch dragon boats and kayaks moving along the river. In the central part, on the beach, you can see volleyball games all through summer. There are also tennis courts, play structures, cycling and cross-country skiing.

THEME: HABITAT
urban green space, rural environment, connectivity

The ongoing destruction of forests, fields and wetlands is one of the greatest menaces to wildlife. The Fletcher Wildlife Garden demonstrates the plants and variety of natural settings necessary to support small animals (bugs to frogs to chipmunks) in the Ottawa area.

Description

The Fletcher Wildlife Garden is a naturalized area in Ottawa. Managed by the Ottawa Field-Naturalists’ Club (OFNC), it has a backyard garden, butterfly meadow, pond, old field, mixed woodlot, ash woodlot, hedgerow, and ravine with a stream. Volunteers restore and enhance these habitats.

What to See and Do Here

Follow the Bill Holland Trail to visit the various habitats in the Garden. Visit the Backyard Garden (behind the Interpretation Centre) to learn what you can plant on your own land. Information on wildlife, gardening, habitat conservation, “howto” leaflets, plant and animal lists, and an extensive photo blog are available on the website: www.ofnc.ca/fletcher. Print materials are available at the Centre on Friday mornings and Sunday afternoons during the summer when volunteers are working and the Centre is open.

THEME: DESIGN
built environment

A building that is made sustainably is one in which the entire conception, from positioning to material selection to functionality, reflect the desire to cause the least harm to the environment and to the people who use it.

Description

Not only are many courses on green building practices offered here, but ACCE is a reflection of what is taught in the building. It has LEED Platinum Certification and features many innovative aspects that you can see.

What to See and Do Here

If you take the self-guided tour, downloadable from the website (see address below), you can see this uniquely green building that serves as a one-of-a-kind living laboratory, demonstrating what is possible through innovative, environmentally friendly design, construction, maintenance and operation. Highlights include a five-store living wall, an expansive atrium, technical shops and labs, study pods, a mobile access centre, critique rooms, and a green roof of almost 4000 square meters.

The location of waste sites is a major issue in any urban area. To reduce the need for landfill, Ottawa has developed a large facility to compost food waste, and another to convert waste to energy. A construction association is helping members recover building materials, and manufacturers are designing products to reduce waste. Another initiative, that of making quality products from recycled materials to reduce the need for virgin materials and divert waste from landfill, is an emerging trend that is nicely illustrated at terra20.

Description

terra20 is North America’s largest eco-retailer. The store is built with recycled materials where possible, with a healthier environment in mind. The result is a store that looks appealing while incorporating elements of sustainability.

What to See and Do Here

Find toys, tableware, jewelry,and, a large selection of health and beauty products that are free of harmful chemicals and not tested on animals. The ecobar® is North America’s largest eco-product re-fill station.